Explore the full WSJ / THE College rankings

Previous ranking

Ranking for 2019 (first published September 5, 2018) Change in methodology: value-added analysis of wages and default rates takes into account regions defined by the Bureau of Economic Analysis of the United States instead of States .

Ranking for 2018 (first published on September 26, 2017) Change in methodology: measurement of the value added of default rates has been added to Results

Ranking for 2017 (published on September 27, 2016, revised on June 16, 2017)

Remarks

Wall Street Journal / Times Higher Education rankings are based on 15 key indicators that evaluate colleges in four areas: results, resources, engagement and environment. The results represent 40% of the weighting and measure factors such as the salary earned by graduates and the debt burden they incur. The resources, with a weighting of 30%, are mainly an approximation of the expenditures made by schools on educational services and student services. The engagement, drawn primarily from a survey of students and weighted at 20%, examines views such as teaching and interactions with faculty and other students. Environment, at 10%, assesses the diversity of the university community.

When using the "Customize Rankings" feature, use the "Reset All Fields" button to return to the default weights of the results (40%), resources (30%), commitment (20%) and the environment (10%).

An assessment of the average level of student debt at the time of graduation replaced the value-added analysis of student loan default rates. Debt levels refer to the median federal debt of undergraduate borrowers, as shown in the US Department of Education's college scorecard. This figure includes only federal loans, excluding private student loans and PLUS parent loans.

Graduation rates are the results for students in one of the following cohorts, as defined by the Ministry of Education's Integrated Post-Secondary Education Data System, or IPEDS: first time, full-time time; no first time, full time; first time, part time; no first time, part time.

These changes have resulted in significant changes for some schools. The largest replacement of this type resulting from debt replacement was operated by Oral Roberts University, which moved from the 501-600 range to the 601+ range. (Specific ranks are not assigned to schools ranked below 400.) The largest change resulting from the change in the graduation rate metric was made by Metropolitan State University, which climbed to 401. at 500 compared to the ranking of last year. from 601 to 800.

The average net price reflects the published participation cost (including tuition fees, mandatory fees, expenses and accommodation and meals) minus the average total amount of aid in the form of grants and scholarships. studies received from government sources and from the institution. It is therefore an indication of the level. help schools can afford. It reflects the average cost of the first full-time and full-time students who received assistance in the form of grants or bursaries. For public institutions, tuition fees are taken into account in the state or district.

Schools offering the best value for money must be in the top 250. The best result is obtained by dividing the overall result of the school by its average net price indicated in the IPEDS system. The US Naval Academy is in the top 250 but is not on the list of top products because its average net price is not available.

Colleges and universities are designated as liberal arts schools based on an analysis of data provided by the Carnegie Classification of Higher Education Institutions. Schools are included in the list if they are: 1) ranked as bachelor's colleges: Arts and Sciences Focus, or 2) if they are classified as colleges and masters universities and meet the following criteria: the majority of undergraduate degrees that they award arts and sciences and award more undergraduate degrees than advanced degrees (master's and doctorate). The analysis is based on the Carnegie Update for 2018, which is the most recent version and is based on the degrees awarded in 2016-2017.

The number of registrations is based on the number of full – time equivalent undergraduate students published in the IPEDS for the 2016-2017 academic year.

University spending per student data are adjusted for regional price differences using regional price parity data provided by the US Bureau of Economic Analysis.

The salary 10 years after college entrance is based on data published by the Ministry of Education's college scorecard for the last three years reported.

The sum of the individual scores for a school's results, resources, commitment and environment may not match the total grade of the school.